Faces of Blackness: The Creation of the New Negro and Négritude Movements in Harlem and Paris

Abstract

This article explores the cultural and ideological link between the New Negro Movement of Harlem and the Négritude Movement of Paris from 1920s to the 1940s. It examines how the works of African American, Caribbean, and African authors such as Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Aimé Césaire, and Léopold Sedar Senghor amongst others are, despite their different backgrounds, united by the common themes of racialized oppression, cultural alienation, and pride in their African heritage. The article also addresses social, cultural and theoretical shortcomings of the New Negro and Négritude movements, which have resulted in widespread criticism of theories of Black culture and identity. Lastly, it explains how the values promoted by New Negro and Négritude literarure remain useful in catalyzing social change today.